Will the opposition do a ‘Batu Sapi’ in the Sarawak state polls?

From Malaysiakini

I don’t know how many seats PKR contested in the last Sarawak state elections, but they won 1.

Now they are gunning for 52 in the soon to be called state election.

Out of a total of 71.

I understand from the Sarawak National Party that they intend to offer candidates in 28 – 30 state constituencies.

And SNAP’s not taking too kindly to Azmin’s declaration, reported inMalaysianinsider, that, in negotiating with SNAP on seat allocations, SNAP would be offered nothing more than 3 seats.

Are we going to see a repeat of the recent Batu Sapi by-election in the Sarawak state polls?

Or will good sense prevail amongst all the opposition parties in Sarawak, holding as paramount a common objective to get rid of Taib and his looting cronies or, at least denying him a 2/3 majority in the new assembly, and with that and that alone in mind, resolving the matter of seat allocations so that we see straight fights in all 71 seats?

Malaysiakini reported on 6th March that the meeting of the Sarawak state leaders of DAP, PAS, PKR and SNAP to discuss the allocation of seats went well.

SNAP’s Jugol went so far as to say that following the discussions, he did not see any problems between the component parties.

Jugol, in my view, also hit the nail square on the head when he said that the allocation of seats should be on the basis of seats being allocated to the party with the best chance of winning the same.

This would necessitate parties disclosing their respective proposed candidates for any one seat and the best, based on an agreed criteria, being picked, whereafter all parties must close ranks and throw their fullest support behind the candidate picked.

Now, if the national leadership of the 3 Pakatan partners could leave it to their respective state leaders to work out the allocation of seats together with SNAP, maybe the spectre of Batu Sapi in the forthcoming Sarawak state polls can be avoided?

courtesy of People's Parliament